“Are Your Clients Having Fun?” The Implications of Respondents’ Preferences for the Delivery of Group Exercise Programs for Falls Prevention

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy McPhate ◽  
Emily M. Simek ◽  
Terry P. Haines ◽  
Keith D. Hill ◽  
Caroline F. Finch ◽  
...  

Background:Group exercise has been shown to be effective in preventing falls; however, adherence to these interventions is often poor. Older adults’ preferences for how these programs can be delivered are unknown.Objective:To identify older people’s preferences for how group exercise programs for falls prevention can be delivered.Design:A two-wave, cross-sectional, state-wide telephone survey was undertaken. Respondents were community-dwelling men and women aged 70+ in Victoria, Australia.Methods:Open-ended questions were asked to elicit information regarding respondent preferences of the program, which were analyzed using a framework approach.Results:Ninetyseven respondents completed the follow-up survey. The results indicate that older adults most frequently report the short-term advantages and disadvantages when describing their preferences for group exercise, such as enjoyment, social interaction, and leader qualities. Longer-term advantages such as falls prevention were described less frequently.Conclusions:This study indicates the importance of interpersonal skills, and that the opportunity for social interaction should not be overlooked as a positive feature of a group exercise program.

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lesley Day ◽  
Margaret J. Trotter ◽  
Alex Donaldson ◽  
Keith D. Hill ◽  
Caroline F. Finch

The study aim was to evaluate the implementation of group- and home-based exercise falls prevention programs delivered through community health agencies to community-dwelling older people. Interviews with program staff were guided by the Diffusion of Innovations theory. Highly consistent themes emerged for the two types of programs. Both had high overall compatibility, high relative advantage, good observability and high inherent trialability—all factors known to strengthen implementation. The level of complexity and low financial compatibility emerged as the strongest potential inhibitors to program implementation in the context examined. The two main factors contributing to complexity were the need to challenge balance safely across a broad range of capability, and practical considerations associated with program delivery.A range of strategies to provide more technical support for exercise program leaders to tailor balance challenge for exercise program leaders may enhance implementation of falls prevention exercise programs.


1994 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen F. Binder ◽  
Marybeth Brown ◽  
Suzanne Craft ◽  
Kenneth B. Schechtman ◽  
Stanley J. Birge

Fifteen community dwelling older adults, ages 66 to 97 years, with at least one risk factor for recurrent falls, attended a thrice weekly group exercise class for 8 weeks. In post- versus preexercise comparisons, knee extensor torque at 0°/sec increased by 16.5% (p= 0.055); time to perform the stand-up test once, and five times consecutively, improved by 29.4 and 27.4%, respectively (p= 0.05,p= 0.01); gait speed for 24 feet increased by 16.5% (p< 0.001); and performance of the progressive Romberg test of balance improved with a mean increase of 1.1 ± 0.9 positions (p= 0.001). Participants reported a significant increase in the mean number of times per week that they went out of their apartment/home independent of exercising, and a significant increase in the mean number of city blocks they could walk. Performance data for nine exercise participants at 1-yr postintervention are presented. A low- to moderate-intensity groups exercise program can effect improvements in lower extremity strength, gait speed, balance, and self-reported mobility function in frail older adults.


2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (9) ◽  
pp. 1085-1106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carri Casteel ◽  
Jennifer Jones ◽  
Paula Gildner ◽  
James M. Bowling ◽  
Susan J. Blalock

The objectives were to examine falls risk factors to determine how the magnitude of risk may differ between homebound and non-homebound older adults, and to describe falls prevention behaviors and participation in falls prevention education. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with convenience samples of community-dwelling older adults recruited through Meals on Wheels programs (homebound, n = 80) and senior centers (non-homebound, n = 84) in North Carolina. Data were collected during home visits and included an interview and medication inventory. Multivariate negative binomial regression with robust variance estimation modeled risk factors for falls. Risk factors for falls observed in both the homebound and non-homebound populations are consistent with what is known in the literature. However, the magnitude of the risk was higher in the homebound than in the non-homebound population with respect to vision impairments, number of high-risk and over-the-counter medications, and use of walking aids .Few participants reported participating in a falls prevention program.


2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-207
Author(s):  
Christina E. Miyawaki ◽  
Rebecca L. Mauldin ◽  
Carolyn R. Carman

Exercise is important for older adults in order to prevent falls and live safer, healthier lives. Visual impairment is a risk factor for falling. Older adults tend to visit optometrists frequently; however, assessing patients’ physical exercise levels is not a routine practice for optometrists. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential for optometrists’ referrals to exercise programs. This study used a mixed-method, cross-sectional design. In focus groups, optometry patients (N = 42) discussed the acceptability of an optometrist’s prescription for exercise programs. The vast majority of optometry patients (90%) indicated that they would follow such a prescription for exercise from their optometrists. Texas optometrists (N = 268) were surveyed about the potential for exercise program prescriptions, and 97% indicated a willingness to prescribe exercise programs to their patients. The results suggest that there is an opportunity for community–clinical partnerships to prevent falls and to improve the health of older patients.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
M. Almada ◽  
P. Brochado ◽  
D. Portela

Aim: As a person ages, the risk of falls increases, which affects quality of life and represents a financial burden to health- and social-systems, and a greater morbidity and mortality risk. Falls lead to decreased social contact, anxiety, long-term physical disability, severe dependency and hospitalizations. Currently, few studies address this phenomenon using a uniform methodology; therefore, this study aims to explore the prevalence of falls and associated-variables in older adults across Europe. Methods: In this cross-sectional analysis, we used data from Wave 6 of SHARE. The prevalence of falls was assessed through the answer “falling down” to the question “For the past six months at least, have you been bothered by any of the health conditions on this card?”. Multilevel logistic regression was used, using falls as a dependent variable. Multilevel univariable logistic regression models were made to identify potential associated factors. Results: From the 41,098 participants, 56.3% were female, and the average age was of 70.0 ± 8.9 years. The prevalence of falls was 8.2% (CI 8.0% to 8.4%), being higher in women (10.1% vs. 5.8%) and increasing with age. Age, female gender, being frail or pre-frail, higher scores on the EURO-D scale, polypharmacy and fear of falling were found to be significantly associated with falls. Conclusions: We found that falls are prevalent in the European community-dwelling population, with variations between countries. As a public health priority, identification of the variables associated with falls is important in order to identify/monitor the risk in older groups and develop tailored and cost-effective interventions for falls prevention.


2008 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maarten Stiggelbout ◽  
Marijke Hopman-Rock ◽  
Willem van Mechelen

This study reports entry correlates and motivations of older adults participating in organized exercise programs in the Netherlands, as determined in a descriptive explorative study (N= 2,350, response rate 86%). Participants were community-dwelling older adults (50+ years) who enrolled and started in 10 different exercise programs. Entry features were analyzed for differences in age, sex, marital status, education, living situation, body-mass index, lifestyle, and health status. Motivations for entering an exercise program were determined using homogeneity analyses. More Exercise for Seniors (MBvO) attracted relatively older seniors, whereas organized sports mainly attracted younger ones. Walking, MBvO, and gymnastics attracted more women, whereas skating and table tennis were reported to attract more male participants. Badminton and cycling attracted relatively higher educated participants, whereas MBvO attracted relatively lower educated participants. Three distinct motivational constructs were found: relax and enjoy, care and cure, and competition. Public health and recruitment implications of these findings are discussed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. iv18-iv27
Author(s):  
Jing Wen Goh ◽  
Devinder Kaur Ajit Singh ◽  
Suzana Shahar

Abstract Introduction Early falls screening among community dwelling older adults is important as a part of falls prevention strategy. Falls Screening Mobile Application (FallSA) was demonstrated to be accepted, reliable and valid to be used for self-risk assessment among community dwelling older adults in an earlier study. However, its discriminative ability is unknown. We aimed to examine the discriminative ability of FallSA in classifying fallers and non-fallers among community dwelling older adults. Methodology A total of 182 community dwelling older adults with mean age of 71.42 ± 5.1 participated in this cross sectional study. Participants demographic and falls history data were obtained. Participants with one or more falls were categorized as fallers. FallSA was used to identify participants falls risk. Independent t-test was used to compare falls risk score among fallers and non-fallers for its discriminative ability. Results Approximately 20% participants were categorized as fallers. Majority of the fallers were females (66.7%), had lower physical activity level and higher scores of geriatric depression scales compared to non-fallers. There was a significant (p&lt; 0.01) different in the FallSA score between fallers (7.33±1.77) and non-fallers (4.34±1.72). Conclusion Our study results showed that FallSA could be used to discriminate fallers and non-fallers in community dwelling older adults. Further studies are in progress to determine the predictive validity of FallSA.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly J. Alvarez ◽  
Shannen Kirchner ◽  
Serena Chu ◽  
Sarah Smith ◽  
Wendy Winnick-Baskin ◽  
...  

Multicomponent exercise programs are currently an efficacious fall prevention strategy among community dwelling older adults although research documents differential falls susceptibility among frail older adults. This study aimed to examine the association between the Boston FICSIT (Frailty and Injuries: Cooperative Studies of Intervention Techniques) exercise program (the original exercise program to demonstrate that nursing home residents can increase strength) and falls incidents in an assisted living community. A descriptive cross-sectional study matched exercise charts for frequency and duration of training with number of reported fall incidents. Among 39 participants, 33% (n=13) reported a fall incident. Adults without a fall history reported more time in aerobic (26.30 versus 20.00,Pvalue=0.71) and strength (1.50 versus 0.50,Pvalue=0.01) training sessions compared to those with a fall history. Multivariate models adjusting for covariates illustrated a significant protective association between strength training and fall incidents (OR=0.25; 95%CI=0.07, 0.85). In this cross-sectional study, this progressive resistance exercise training program into an assisted living population was associated with a decrease in the number of fall incidents.


2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. iv28-iv33
Author(s):  
Nivedha Balachandar ◽  
Silvia Sim ◽  
Pey June Tan ◽  
Jagadish Mallya ◽  
Noor Hafizah Ismail ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction A multitude of modifiable factors can contribute to one’s fall risk. Healthcare professionals (HCP) are equipped to identify such factors, and make appropriate recommendations to help older adults prevent falls. However, there is limited evidence on the awareness and practice of this in Asian communities. Thus, this paper aims to understand the participation and barriers for community-dwelling Singaporeans to discuss falls with their HCPs. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a nationally-representative sample of Singaporeans aged ≥60 living in the community. Participants were asked if they have fallen in the past 12 months, if they discussed what they can do to avoid falls with their HCPs (doctor/nurse) and for their perceived barriers via a semi-structured questionnaire with multiple responses. Unstructured data was coded using content analysis by two researchers and pooled with structured data. Sub-group differences between fallers and non-fallers were anaylsed using chi square tests. Results Of 549 participants (70.6±6.9 years and 61% female), most (n=447, 81%) have never talked to their HCPs. More fallers discussed falls prevention with HCPs than non-fallers (p=0.037). The top barriers cited for discussing falls with HCPs – low perception of fall risk (55%) and misconceptions regarding falls and/or HCPs (29%) – were more prevalent amongst non-fallers (p=0.008) and fallers (p&lt;0.001) respectively. Other barriers identified include competing priorities (8%) and actively taking alternate management to mitigate falls risk (4%). Discussion Fallers and non-fallers have different reasons behind not discussing falls with HCPs. Findings indicate that despite having higher fall risk, fallers may still not talk to HCPs as they are either unaware that fall risk can be mitigated, or of HCP’s role in fall prevention. Future studies should address fallers’ knowledge and attitudes to improve their participation in interventions in the community, and investigate health practitioners’ readiness to address concerns about falls.


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